The present invention is directed to an insulator for an electrical terminal, and more particularly to a sleeve-type insulator which is surroundingly engageable with an electrical terminal comprising a first relatively fixed terminal portion removably coupled with a second terminal portion which carries a wire.
Sleeve-type insulators for electrical terminals are well-known in the art. Typical of such sleeve-type insulators are those shown, for example, in McQuiston U.S. Pat. No. 2,386,000. Generally speaking, such sleeve-type insulators comprise a rubber or rubber-like tapered tube member which is slidably engageable with a wire, and thereafter slidably engageable into elastically gripping, surrounding engagement with the junction of the wire with a terminal structure. In using such a prior art insulator or sleeve, however, it is necessary to slidably engage the sleeve over the wire prior to attaching the wire to a terminal. This is satisfactory in some applications.
However, in many other applications a terminal assembly comprises one relatively fixed terminal part and a second terminal part carried on the wire to effect secure coupling of the wire with the relatively fixed terminal part. In such cases, the terminal part carried on the wire is often of larger dimension than the wire itself, for example a space type terminal. Accordingly, the insulator sleeve must be slidably engaged with the wire before attachment of this terminal member to the wire.
Moreover, the tubular sleeve must generally be slidably moved some distance back along the wire to permit interconnection of the wire thereof with the terminal. Typical of such terminal arrangements is a spade-type terminal affixed to one or more wires which is then connected with a fixed bus bar by means of a threaded fastener such as a screw threadably engaged with the bus bar. When using the prior art tapered sleeve insulator, this assembly requires multiple manufacturing operations, resulting in relatively slower and more costly production.